New Delhi: India is currently sitting on more than 450 crore litres of unused ethanol production capacity, a situation that is slowing the sector’s growth, the Indian Sugar and Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) said on Thursday while urging the government to approve ethanol exports, reported Deccan Herald.
ISMA Director General Deepak Ballani told reporters that the country has already built the required capacity, but much of it is lying idle. He explained that India can produce up to 1,900 crore litres of ethanol annually, of which 900 crore litres come from sugar-based feedstock and 1,000 crore litres from grain such as rice and maize.
The sugar mills are affected by the lower allocation of ethanol. The current allocation of only 289 crore litres of ethanol to the sugar sector for ESY 2025–26 — merely 27.5% of total allocations — has created a serious imbalance and left a large part of distillery capacity underutilised.
Ballani said the government should permit the export of surplus ethanol and also increase the level of ethanol blending in petrol, reported Deccan Herald.
He added that ethanol blending has helped the country save about ₹1.55 lakh crore in foreign exchange and increased farmers’ income by around ₹1.36 lakh crore. It has also cut CO₂ emissions by nearly 790 lakh metric tonnes, an amount equal to taking about 175 lakh vehicles off the road.
